South Korea

The Republic of Korea (South Korea) maintains a democratic system of governance in which most civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights are generally respected and upheld. Persistent abuse against more vulnerable parts of the population is common, including widespread discrimination and sexual harassment of women, as well as discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, racial and ethnic minorities, and foreign migrants and refugees. The government also retains draconian criminal defamation laws and sweeping intelligence and national security laws have been used to suppress speech critical of the government and business interests.